Quote (IceMage @ May 25 2019 10:59am)
Trump Jr. thought he was meeting with a Russian government attorney who wanted to share dirt on Hillary as part of the Russian government's support for his father.
It's really unknowable what all of her ties to the Russian government are. It's not like every single Russian asset is a diplomat, or a card carrying member of the SVR or GRU. What we know is she was a lobbyist who worked to alleviate sanctions against Russia, and coordinated with the Prosecutor General of Russia. Let's not pretend this is some random Russian American who couldn't possibly be working with Russian intelligence.
And you think that Donald Trump Jr was so unused to a world filled with bullshitters, hyporbole and snake oil salesmen trying to push dubious propositions that he would automatically take every vague prospect at face value?
You don't think that DTJr or Kushner or Manafort would have any cause for skepticism or caution about the too-good-to-be-true offer being pushed at them?
Donald Trump Jr, as in, Donald Trump's son, son of the biggest carnival barker since P.T. Barnum?
Trump Jr. thought he was meeting with a dubious but plausible prospect, and they entertained it enough just to figure out it was a hoax and then walked right out of the meeting. He's obviously got more experience than you or I at dealing with unreliable figures and sketchy business propositions. Virtually everyone in his orbit has built their life on dancing around the truth like its a game. If he wasn't walking into that meeting skeptical, then someone swapped him in the crib with a child that isn't Trump's son.
He met with them to learn what they were really on about. It turned out to be bogus. If it had been real, and he had taken their dirt as part of a government support for his campaign, and not reported it to the FBI, but weaponized it in the media- then you'd have something to criticize. Like how that's exactly what happened with the Manafort Ledger.